* The Grams Family:

** All in the Family:

        Bob Wheeler and Norma Grams Wheeler

        Donadean Grams Zutter

Emogene Grams Knuth

Middle Row Continued:
Rose Scott Grams
Kelly Bauer
Gary Saxe
Kaydi Saxe
Kelli Saxe
Seated:
Ann Biesecker Struck
Delores Grams Yanonne
Norma Grams Wheeler
Bob Wheeler

Helton, in the back row, is just a little taller than Kaydi and Kelli, he is 5; and is standing on a chair

Nathan, in the back row, is the tallest member of the group, he is 6'5" but seems shorter than those next to him

Sherri was standing on a chair too

Dennis is bent over because he is trying to keep Silesia's cigarette filled hand from being in front of Norma's face.

Everyone saw a looming moon cast shadow to the right of one of the Saxe's sheds after they moved near the motor home.  Sherri insisted that there were no trees near enough on her property that would cast such a shadow.  Dennis went into a whole litany on how such a shadow might be projected to be so close in a humid summer night's haze.  In fact, Sherri has trees that near the shed and there is no atmospheric effect needed to explain the shadow.

Notice how the collective Grams mouth is almost always open

Aunt Dee out drank everyone - we were all ready for bed and needed to stop drinking.  Dee seemed to be on top of the table while we were all under it, so to speak she "drank us under the table"

Frequently heard: "I want fireworks for MY birthday"

Dee said she hadn't had this much in 50 years and she hadn't drank that much for nearly as long

Dennis and Silesia stayed up until at least 2 am with less than 3 hours sleep each of the two nights before the party

Helton cooked hard and was too tired to join some of the socialization.  Several people tried to wake him up for the late night revelry but one of his sleep ridden responses was heard to be: "I'm printing, I'm printing"

Both Vern and Helton got chased off the country road as they scooted by on the 4 Wheeler.  The almost riotous Grams Golden Girls were angry at the men for disturbing the still of the night while they were on the moon lit walk

Toby, the Saxe family dog and party mascot, happily jumped on the 4 wheeler and took a ride with whoever made the offer.

The supper was totally Brazilian.  It was an unfamiliar cuisine and wonderful and hearty but some guests could not get beyond the unfamiliar to the wonderful.

Caipirinha - a drink made with cachaça (ca-shaa-suh)- distilled sugar cane liquor used to make the cocktail. It is  180 proof,  the cocktail is made with sugar, lime juice and sugar

Feijoda - black beans with meat - The Brazilian national dish with 5 or 6 kinds of meat: chunks of dried beef, fresh beef, 3 kinds of sausage, smoked bacon - all in a black bean sauce

Pao de queijo - cheese bread - a kind of cheese muffin with yucca flour, eggs, cheese, milk, butter and seasoning

Bobo de frango - chicken breast pieces, cilantro, peeled tomatoes, cocoa nut milk with azeite de dende (special palm tree oil) in a yucca based sauce

Arroz branco - white rice cooked in oil and fresh garlic with scallions as topping

Salada - tropical salad - 3 kinds of lettuce, heart of palm, radishes, fresh tomatoes - the secret: Helton's salad dressing.

Farofa - yucca flour with sautéed onions, egg, scallions, and beans.  Helton's farofa was lacking in the style of beans commonly used in Brazil but the theme was right

Laranja - Pieces of peeled bitter orange or grapefruit to clear the palate between the strongly flavored courses

Mostarda - salty mustard or collard greens sautéed in olive oil and fresh garlic

Caipivodka - drinks made like a caipirinha, but with vodka, when the cachaça is gone.

Brazilian food is strongly flavored

Feijoda is traditionally served as the weekend dish just as fried chicken is the family dish here

Textures and tastes are counter balanced with each course. Notice the sandy texture of Farofa versus the smoothness of bobo de frango.

Because of the strong flavors of each dish, laranja is used to clean the palate between each course

Since it is a hot climate, high salt content is de rigor, the mustard seemed too salty for our tastes but the dish is commonly made as we tasted it.  The salt helps to keep body salt content high as salt is lost by perspiration on hot Brazilian days

The food we ate was less salty overall than the typical Brazilian meal

A vinaigrette is commonly served as a condiment.  Helton didn't have the ingredients or the time to prepare this common table dish

The main meal of the day is still in the middle of the day, similar to the heft of our dinner.

Our lunch 'hour' is usually 30 to 60 minutes.  Brazilian lunch hours are 60 to 90 but then work continues until 7 o'clock.

Evening meals are small; like the "fille a palito" we had Sunday night - snacks of steak strips, usually served sautéed in onions alongside a small dish of steamed vegetables

Cachaça is cheaper than spit in Brazil.  Order a bottle of beer (served in liter size) at a bar or restaurant and it costs anywhere from 50 cents to $1.  Add a shot of cachaça and it is still only 50 cents to $1 for the beer AND the cachaça.

Silesia paid $18 in NY for the liter of cachaça that she brought to Wisconsin

Cachaça is the rage in Europe - I recently heard on NPR that during the last few months it is only outsold by beer in Germany and France

A typical Brazilian toast is 'primo pinga, segundo cervaja'  or 'first the shot (of cachaça) and second the beer'.  The Brazilian Language is Portuguese. Don't use that when you are in a Spanish speaking crowd - pinga means penis in Spanish.  Laughing out loud (LOL)